Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Florida

I have a home in Florida, but have been up north since late Spring visiting a close family member who has taken ill. A few months ago the gentleman who cuts our lawn was surprised to find people he didn't know cutting our lawn & trimming our bushes. He sent me a picture he took of a document that was taped to our garage door. Apparently, the people who trimmed the bushes around our house have filed a lien against the house for payment for their trimming and intend to foreclose on the house. (The house is wholly owned by us; there are no mortgages, by the way.)

About that same time I received calls and an email from someone expressing an interest in buying the house. I Googled the person copied on the email and found that he is a real estate agent who specializes in "leveraged buyouts" and "short sales," so I'm thinking this may be a scam.

What does it mean that these people intend to foreclose? Does that mean that they will be taking our house, or breaking into it, on the date they foreclose, or just that they will be filing for foreclosure in some court? If the former, how do I stop this? If the latter, will there be a hearing and will the court notify me of this hearing?


Asked on 12/18/16, 5:41 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Barry Stein De Cardenas, Freixas, Stein & Zachary

You really need a local attorney to represent your interests. The person who did the lawn can have a lien but they must have been authorized to do what they did otherwise they trespassed and likely are not entitled to any money. Sounds like a scan to me too. They can impose a lien and foreclose on that lien and force a judgment and sale, but that all takes time and money. get an attorney now and let the attorney handle it for you.

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Answered on 12/19/16, 7:56 am


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